


up where they walk, up where they run (up where they stay all day in the sun)

by georgiehensley



Category: Shazam! (2019)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Awkward Boners, Awkwardness, Canon Disabled Character, Developing Friendships, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-14
Updated: 2019-04-29
Packaged: 2020-01-13 10:50:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18467437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/georgiehensley/pseuds/georgiehensley
Summary: freddy knows mermaids aren't real. but then he almost drowns and meets a boy with eyes as sea-green as the ocean itself and he doesn't knowwhatto believe anymore.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> i am so intimidated by multi-chaptered fics but everyone in the freebat discord seems to be writing one for a different au, so i thought i would too. hopefully i can actually keep up with this one (and maybe give it a proper ending too).

freddy shivers as wind blows through his dark brown curls, sending them flying into his face. he huffs out a breath and lifts his hand to push them away. his foster family rented a boat for the afternoon with the intention of taking it out on the water and enjoying the ocean breeze. rosa even brought binoculars in case they spotted any whales or dolphins, though darla keeps asking if they'll see any mermaids.

“they're real!” darla says in response to everyone's disbelief. “i know they're real! they have sparkly, colorful tails and everything!”

“darla,” freddy says, since no one else will speak up to her. “i hate to burst your bubble but _mermaids aren't real_.”

“and flying alien men are?” darla says back. mary laughs and gives her a high five. freddy shakes his head.

“did you put her up to this?” he asks. mary shrugs innocently.

“i have no idea what you're talking about,” she says. freddy sighs.

it isn't long before the boat finally comes to a stop, rocking a bit before settling as the ocean calms underneath it. mary, darla, rosa, and victor keep an eye on the water to see if they can spot any whales. eugene plays mortal kombat on his nintendo switch. pedro has his earphones in, looking out at the water but probably off in another world in his head.

freddy watches the water for a few minutes, quickly growing bored as nothing happens. he doesn't even spot a ripple in the water, it's almost completely still. with a sigh, he stands from his seat, walking over to the end of the boat where he can dip his feet in the water. he rolls his shorts up and sits down, placing his crutch down next to him. lazily, he kicks at the water, watching as bubbles form and small waves push away from where his legs are. he stops once, only to see more bubbles float up to the surface, ones that he hadn't made himself. he turns his head back towards the front of the boat. everyone’s still there, safe and sound. freddy knows he would have heard something if one of them somehow fell overboard.

he glances back down at the water, which appears to be peach now, somewhere beneath his feet. he leans forward, swearing he sees a hint of green amidst the peach. suddenly something cold wraps around his ankle - is that a _hand?_ \- and in the blink of an eye, freddy’s underwater.

immediately, he flails, but whatever pulled him down has a vice-like grip on his ankle. he doesn't get pulled all the way down to the ocean floor, though - only far enough that it will take a bit of an effort to get back up to the surface. freddy looks up and tries to measure the distance in his head as he struggles to get free. suddenly, his ankle is freed, but as he can't glance down at his feet as his vision is suddenly flooded by the face of a boy, just around his age, who’s swimming way too close to him. freddy jumps, instinct making him want to gasp before his brain catches up and realizes that he can't breathe underwater. the boy’s eyes are bright and green, practically glowing in the water.

the boy breaks his gaze, glancing up towards the surface, seeming to hear something that freddy can't, his vision starting to blur at the edges as all the oxygen leaves his body in a few small bubbles. he feels a pair of arms wrap around his torso, pulling him up, and the world turns black.

* * *

his vision floods with bright white light as freddy feels a tightness in his chest. he leans over and coughs, spitting out what feels like _gallons_ of salt water. his lungs burn and he takes a few shaky breaths, the weight slowly lifting off his chest. he rolls onto his back again, finding his entire foster family hovering over him.

“hi,” he croaks sheepishly.

“what happened?” rosa asks. “i looked over my shoulder and you were gone!”

“i fell,” freddy says. “i saw something underwater and leaned over to get a better look and i fell.” _not a total lie_ , he thinks.

“be more careful, next time,” victor says, rubbing rosa's shoulders comfortingly.

“i will,” freddy says as victor and rosa walk away. he pushes himself up into a seated position, groaning. mary, eugene, and pedro return to their previous spots too. darla stays next to freddy.

“did you see any mermaids?” she asks, grinning.

“no, darla,” freddy says. “for the last time, _mermaids aren't real_.” darla frowns, then shrugs, standing up and leaving freddy alone. freddy sighs, reaching for his crutch. he glances back towards the water, thinking about the boy he saw. he hadn't been able to spot a tail, but the boy must have been _breathing_ the water, right? otherwise he would have passed out too.

still, not a mer _maid._ but, maybe a mer _man..._


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i always get really passionate about long-form fics the first day i think of them. hopefully that passion doesn't fizzle out this time...

freddy has trouble sleeping at night. he has so much energy all the time that it can be hard for him to turn it all off and relax enough to sleep. sometimes reading comic books is enough to quiet his loud mind, but tonight he can't even focus on those.

he can't stop thinking about the boy he saw in the water. he wonders if it was a hallucination due to the lack of air, but why would his oxygen-less mind conjure up the image of a boy in the water? yeah, he  _ likes _ boys, but he doesn't think he would be making up some random guy for him to look at in his final moments. it doesn't make sense. and how would he have gotten back to the surface? he couldn't float. some _ thing _ definitely pulled him underwater, and that same thing is what pulled him back up to the surface.

without thinking, freddy pulls a sweatshirt on over his pajamas (an aquaman one, what a coincidence), grabs his crutch, and heads outside, walking down to the dock and sitting down at the end of it. it's too high up for his feet to hit the water but he takes his shoes off anyway, not wanting to lose them beneath the waves if they were to fall off. the ocean breeze feels good against his face and the soft crash of the waves gives him something to focus on. he can feel himself starting to relax, his shoulders starting to sag.

just as his now-heavy eyelids start to fall shut, a head pops up out of the water. water splashes and freddy startles, fully alert now. he looks all around before his gaze falls on the water, spotting something bobbing up and down. he reaches into his phone pocket to take out his phone and turn on the flashlight feature.

the smiling face of the boy from earlier is looking back at him.

freddy wishes he could jump back, but his bad leg keeps him glued to his spot. he bites the inside of his cheek.

“uh, hi, ocean guy,” he says. he mentally kicks himself.  _ ocean guy? really? _ he clears his throat. “do you speak english?” the boy in the water giggles, and it sounds so adorable and sweet, freddy swears his heart skips a beat. he thanks the darkness of the night as he feels his face start to heat up.

“of course,” the boy says, his voice as beautiful as his face - and thank  _ god _ freddy didn't say that out loud. “i’m no different than you humans. well, except for my tail.”

“your… tail?” freddy asks. the boy disappears beneath the surface of the water, and before freddy can wonder if he’s swam away, the end of his  _ tail _ pops out of the water, splashing freddy. as he flinches from the cold, freddy catches a glimpse of its color, a blend of shimmering gold and bright red. just like that, it's gone again, and the boy’s head is back above the water. he's giggling again, and freddy’s starting to realize that he loves the sound.

“sorry,” he says, smile still on his face. “i didn't mean to splash you. it just happens whenever i flick my tail on the surface.”

“s’okay,” freddy says. the boy keeps smiling at him, looking him over, and freddy feels shy under his gaze. he glances away and clears his throat.

“do you have a name?” he asks.

“billy,” the boy says. “and you?”

“freddy,” freddy answers without thinking. for a moment, he regrets being so honest with someone he just met, someone who  _ almost drowned him _ just a few hours ago, but the boy -  _ billy _ \- seems nice enough, and freddy likes his smile.

“why’d you pull me underwater earlier today?” he asks. it’s a question that's been bugging him all day, mostly because of his thoughts that billy is actually a boy that somehow called the ocean his home, rather than the obvious answer of him being a  _ merman _ .

now it's billy’s turn to grow sheepish, glancing down at the water.

“i never saw human feet up close before,” he admits. “i wanted to get a better look, but i guess i pulled too hard. and then when i wanted to get a better look at  _ you, period _ , i realized that you couldn't breathe, so i brought you back up to the surface. i’m really sorry. but i’m glad you're not dead!” freddy snorts.

“yeah,  _ thankfully  _ you didn't kill me,” he says. “but if you ever wanna look at my feet again, just ask. you don't have to almost drown me, okay?” billy giggles.

“okay,” he says. freddy smiles.

soon, they fall into natural conversation, with freddy telling billy all about his family and vice versa. freddy learns that billy’s an orphan whose uncle won't let him get anywhere near humans, and billy will often sneak away to do just that, though it isn't easy for him to do so out in the middle of the ocean. he tells freddy that he’s heard of mers being able to grow legs once they touch land, but his uncle says it's only a myth.

“well, we'll have to try that sometime,” freddy says when billy finishes. he doesn't think much of the comment, considers it to be wishful thinking, but the way billy looks at him as a result, looking so  _ happy _ and  _ hopeful… _ it makes freddy’s heart race again. he tells billy he’ll be back again the following night, that he needs to go to sleep now and that he’s stayed up too late.

“promise?” billy asks. freddy smiles.

“i promise.”

when he returns home, freddy falls asleep almost as soon as his head hits the pillow, still wearing his sweatshirt. he dreams of the ocean and a boy with sea-green eyes and a golden tail.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hope this slightly longer update helps make up for such a long wait! i've had this continuation idea for a while, just never got the motivation to write. thankfully getting my writing juices flowing with some school work helped me to get this done.
> 
> do let me know if you have any ideas for how to continue this going forward. i have a few but i don't have a set plan in mind, so i'm open to suggestions

for several nights after that, freddy returns to the docks - it’s not so much that he’s restless anymore, it’s just the only time he has to visit billy in private, without any questions or judgment from his foster family. billy greets him each and every night with a dimpled smile,  always leaving freddy blushing and with a fluttery feeling in his stomach. billy continuously expresses his desire to explore what he calls “the human world”, and once, freddy offers to help him test that supposed theory about merpeople getting legs when they go on land. 

this time, rather than meet at the docks, freddy meets billy right on the beach. he tries to maintain his balance in the sand, shifting his feet a few times to keep his crutch from sinking too far down. 

it’s quiet for a while as freddy anxiously awaits billy’s arrival, but soon he sees billy’s head pop up from the water, and he smiles, beckoning him closer. billy follows, reaching the shallowest part of the water and pulling himself along on the sand. he’s surprisingly strong from all the swimming, only grunting from the sudden weight of gravity upon his shoulders rather than the pull of the waves and his own body weight.

he manages to completely get his tail out from the water, and at first, nothing happens. he glances over at freddy, a sad look in his eyes. freddy mirrors his expression.

suddenly, something changes. as billy’s scales begin to dry in the nighttime air, they appear to fade away, disappearing into skin, his tail splitting into two before turning into a pair of legs with feet at the end.

freddy watches the entire process take place, unable to stop himself from pulling out his phone and recording the whole thing for evidence. only, when he comes to realize that billy is completely  _ naked _ as his legs form, catching sight of his bare behind, freddy’s cheeks begin to burn and his phone slips out of his grip, falling into the sand as his hands suddenly grow very sweaty. he wipes his now-free hand on the leg of his pajama pants, bending to pick up his phone and avoid looking at billy as the other boy manages to stand up, pushing himself onto shaky legs.

billy grins as he stands on the smooth, wet sand by the water, letting out an excited laugh as he looks down at his legs and wiggles his toes. he glances back up at freddy, who’s bent down, reaching for some sort of black, rectangular thing in the sand.

“oh, let me help you,” he says. without thinking, he lifts one leg and places it in front of him like he’d seen other humans do before. he lifts his other leg and stumbles, struggling to balance on the one leg. he puts his other leg back down in front of the first and relaxes, thinking that walking isn’t  _ that _ hard. he tries the same thing again and manages to keep himself moving forward. but when he reaches the soft sand, his legs shake again, and he stumbles. he tries to keep moving forward but it’s difficult on this new type of land, and he soon finds himself falling forward - landing right on top of freddy.

“oh my gosh, i’m so sorry!” billy says. “i guess walking isn’t as easy as it looks.”

“yeah,” freddy says, feeling as though his face is on  _ fire _ as a naked billy lays on top of him in the sand. one arm is trapped beneath the weight of their bodies while the other is up in the air and freddy isn’t quite sure what to do with it, too scared to touch billy’s skin (which he can feel is very much warm through his clothes) as if it might make him explode. he still tries to keep his gaze cast up at the sky as he knows that the blood rushing to his face could  _ easily _ travel downward if he’s not careful.

“we should get you some clothes,” he says quickly, clearing his throat. billy’s eyebrows furrow and he tilts his head.

“what are clothes?”

 

quickly, freddy helps teach billy, who manages to finally get the hang of it once he’s on flat land again, how to walk. freddy also all but shoves his sweatshirt at billy and tells him to hold it at his waist to keep himself covered. billy isn’t sure why he has to but does as freddy tells him since he  _ is _ the real human here.

“we have to be quiet, okay?” freddy says once he and billy are standing outside the backdoor to the family’s vacation home. “no one can know that you’re here; well, not yet, anyway.”

“okay,” billy says with a nod. freddy nods back and opens the door. he steps inside and billy follows. freddy lifts a finger to his mouth, signaling for billy to keep quiet. billy nods again and follows after freddy, though his footsteps sound loud and heavy in the nearly silent house. freddy glances back at billy, who tries to be lighter on his feet once they start walking again, but it’s hard when he only just learned to walk a few minutes ago. 

“okay, change of plans,” freddy whispers to him. “we go upstairs as fast as we can and just ignore any noise that we might make. got it?”

“stairs?” billy asks. “i’ve never walked up stairs before.”

“just do what i do,” freddy says. “minus the crutch.” billy nods. he follows freddy to the staircase, keeping a close eye on his legs as he goes. billy tries to mimic the action, lifting one leg at a time onto each step and lifting his body up - and he does it. he lets out a squeak of joy when he makes it up one step and freddy turns to glare at him.

“sorry,” billy says. he’s silent as he follows freddy up the rest of the stairs, down the hall, and into his bedroom.

billy shuts the door behind them and when he turns back around, freddy’s bent over an open drawer, digging through to find some clothes billy can borrow. his t-shirt rides up just a little, exposing the fair skin of his back and suddenly billy feels a warmth flood in his stomach, and just a little further south. the grip he has on freddy’s sweatshirt tightens.

“this should be good enough,” freddy says with a teasing smile as he straightens again, holding a pair of soft, plaid pajama bottoms and an aquaman t-shirt in his hand. he turns back around and finds billy staring at him wide-eyed, his face red.

“is something wrong?” freddy asks. billy shakes his head.

“i’m fine,” he says, voice cracking at the end. he squeezes the sweatshirt again and freddy notices in the way his arms flex.

“are you hurt?”

“no. i just feel… stiff.”

billy squeezes the sweatshirt again. freddy’s eyebrows shoot up with realization.

“oh,” he says, and his brain moves a mile a minute to figure out  _ why _ billy feels such a way, and suddenly he starts to turn red too. “ _ oh _ .” 

“i should put on your, uh,  _ clothes _ ,” billy says, lifting a hand and reaching towards freddy.

“i forgot the underwear,” freddy says quickly. he moves to turn back around, only to stop and glance at billy. “you can close your eyes, if you want. so you don’t feel… more stiff.” billy nods and shuts his eyes. he hears freddy rummage around some more before telling him to open them again. there’s an added grey cloth in the bundle of clothes in his hand that he offers to billy. billy takes them, but doesn’t move.

“do i change here?” he asks.

“oh, yeah, i guess you can,” freddy answers. “i’ll keep my eyes shut this time.” he does so and billy lets the sweatshirt fall to the floor. he pulls out the grey fabric first, assuming it’s what freddy called “underwear”. he looks it over, examining the two holes in the bottom and figures out that it’s for each of his legs. he steps into them and pulls them up to his waist, as high as they can go. he reaches down and does the same for the plaid “shorts”. when left with one more, green piece of fabric, billy stops.

“freddy?” he asks. “which way does this go?” freddy’s eyes open again and he instantly relaxes once seeing billy with his underwear and shorts on. he steps forward, taking the shirt from billy.

“the decal goes in the front, on the outside,” he explains. “the tag goes in the back, on the inside. head goes through the big hole, arms through the smaller ones. sound good?” billy nods and takes the shirt from freddy, putting it on. as he gets his arms through, freddy has just a moment to look down at his taut skin of his stomach, revealing his firm abdominal muscles, before the fabric of the shirt covers them. freddy finds himself blushing again, but when a fully-dressed billy smiles at him, freddy can’t help but smile back.

“alright, time to go to sleep,” he says.

“sleep?” billy asks. “but i’m not tired.”

“well, no one else will be awake till the sun’s up, so there’s not a whole lot we can do right now,” freddy says. when he notices billy’s disappointment, he sighs. “i can read you a comic book if you want?” billy’s face lights up at the suggestion and freddy’s heart soars.

together, they lie down in freddy’s bed - a twin bed, so there’s not quite enough room for two teenage boys to fit comfortably, but they make it work. they lie there with no space between them as freddy turns on his reading light, opening his latest issue of  _ aquaman _ .

“that looks like king arthur!” billy says upon seeing the cover. freddy laughs.

“yeah, that’s aquaman,” he says. “half human, half atlantean. you know him?”

“i never met him but i’ve heard plenty of stories,” billy says. “he commanded an army of millions in the ocean, atlanteans _ and _ fish, against his brother, prince orm, just last year. and he won, obviously.”

“yeah, he’s pretty cool,” freddy says. “should i start from the beginning?”

“anywhere is fine,” billy says. freddy smiles and opens the book.

it isn’t long before billy dozes off, his head a heavy but comfortable weight against freddy’s shoulder. freddy doesn’t mind, though, feeling a bit tired himself. he reaches over and shuts his reading light, putting his comic book aside on his night table before he turns to help billy settle back against the pillows. freddy settles down next to him and smiles, his eyes falling shut. this time, his dreams feature a two-legged billy… and freddy’s bed. 


End file.
